System: Game World

Once again, Tang Ling rose from his bed and looked at the small window just next to his bed. He couldn't help but marvel at how different were the two worlds. One was a beautiful world while the other was a dead world that seemed devoid of life.

However, deep in his heart, Tang Ling knew this was not true. It was not void of life but lacking in vibrancy. Here, the world seemed monotone.

Tang Ling shook his head, trying to shake off his thoughts, and succeeded. Rising from his bed, he greeted his sister and planned his schedule.

Credits aren't much of a problem now. Even if he did nothing, he would be able to live off the money made for quite some time. What was important was to change things up.

He had become a Hunter full of anticipation but now, it seems that his enthusiasm has somewhat diminished. Or at least, calmed down.

The prospects of a Hunter isn't that good. The pay is great but the nature of the job made it shaky.

However, in this city, where ways of becoming rich are severely restricted; a Hunter is one of the very few pathways to social mobility. If it wasn't for the System, Tang Ling would never consider becoming an 'official' resident'.

It is said that in inner cities, everyone was considered citizens of the Empire and even slum-dwellers had proper verification and social security. Unlike in Bao Feng City, slums in inner cities were just the poorest district of the city and it is where those who lost their jobs or those with minimal skills lives but they were never excluded.

Never would they face discrimination in the middle of the street nor will they be excluded from certain services in the richer area.

'Maybe I should try moving out of the city like Fatty Dong. However, that won't be so simple...'

Moving out of the city wouldn't be easy; the wilderness was very dangerous with Beasts lurking around the corners. There may be a few Beasts in the wasteland but every single of them can kill him if caught unprepared.

This could be mitigated by traveling in a group, buying a ticket to the inner city via a Flux-powered car, or hiding your scent.

However, bureaucracy dictates that moving to other cities requires the bureaucracy to proceed.

Unluckily, Tang Ling had to be born and raised in Bao Feng City where corruption was particularly rampant.

The mayor wouldn't be too keen on letting his citizen, even a vagrant, to get away from his control. Tang Ling reckoned that if he allowed, a new wave of immigration would ensue.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

There was knocking on the door and Tang Ling hurriedly opened the door.

Ducke was standing next to the door and was waiting for him.

"Ducke?" Tang Ling asked, surprised.

"Yes, it's me." Ducke nodded. Noticing the puzzlement in Tang Ling's eyes, he coughed: "There's something I need to talk about. How about we talk somewhere more private?"

Tang Ling understood, sometimes, some s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e information could not be said anywhere. Some level of privacy was required when talking about these things.

Tang Ling let Ducke enter his home, and the two men walked through the hallway and sat down at the dining table.

Ducke took a cigarette and lit it, taking a few puffs, he finally spoke.

"There are movements from Blue Sea Bar. I've heard that there are some military equipment trades with other gangs in the dark. It seems that they are preparing something."

Tang Ling's eyelids shook. Everyone knew who was behind the Blue Sea Bar, if there was a move from this place, then the entire city will shake and its impact would be far-reaching. It was pretty much clear that something was brewing in the dark and one could predict that it targeted the Black Tiger Gang.

There are no true kings in the underworld, and that is also true in the slums. There are only stronger and weaker factions. The Black Tiger Gang were no saints but are responsible which enabled the districts under their command to prosper. Comparatively speaking, the areas managed by the Black Tiger Gang usually are grey areas whereas areas managed by other vicious gangs would be known as black areas.

But when the powerful Blue Sea Bar moves, everything will change.

"What did they bring into the table?" Wu Ming asked.

"Machetes, body armors, and... firearms." Ducke sighed after saying all that.

Tang Ling went silent.

The greatest power in this world is Flux, the power which was and still is used to defeat Beasts. He had seen first-hand how fearsome a Flux user is, the city's Protector at that time, summoned storms and bolts of lightning, disintegrating every Ferocious Beast in his sight. However, a close second would be firearms.

Firearms were introduced 350 years ago when a group of rebels fought against the city's forces. Using a substance called 'Blackpowder', they could throw projectiles that could kill several men in one throw. With this fearsome weapon, the battle lasted several days until powerful Fluxers stepped in but even then, the casualties were huge, even many of the mighty and noble Fluxers fell, causing the whole Empire to pay attention to this new technology.

With the advent of firearms, Beasts were no longer feared as much. The rough skin which could block blades and spears were easily penetrated by a bullet, however, it did not mean that firearms can easily kill a Beast, let alone a Ferocious Beast. Wounds do not equate to death unless it is hit in a critical area, Beasts with terrifying vitality can shrug off volleys of bullets and still be able to rampage through. In a sense, it kinda felt like the HP shown on his System display. The bullets could penetrate its armor but 100 damage is only one-tenth of an Uruvian Bear's HP and compared to the 10-meter Beast who destroyed the city wall ten years ago, bullets were like stings to It.

However, humans were not so lucky to have such vitality and defense so firearms were lethal to them. The previous him would instantly collapse under one single shot and the current him would not fare that much well.

Firearms are very expensive, even more, expensive than any other type of weapons but also a lot more powerful and effective.

"Even the mighty Black Tiger can't change the situation, he will be forced back into a corner against this big alliance..." Ducke finally came to the conclusion.

"But why would Blue Sea Bar get involved in this? The man-in-charge shouldn't be interested in such a petty squabble, right?" Tang Ling asked in confusion. He had not followed the news for quite some time and could not deduce the reason.

"A united populace is prosperous and has ambition, but a divided populace is weak and obedient." Ducke quoted a sentence that he'd seen in the library. "But most importantly, there are rumors there shall be a war soon."